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mentioned above), another as bishop of Interamna (modern Terni),and the third from Africa.It was in the year 496 that Pope Gelasius officially changed theFebruary 15 Lupercalia festival to the February 14 St. Valentine'sDay to give Christian meaning to a pagan festival. The holidaybecame popular in the United States in the 1800's during the CivilWar.As well, Pope Gelasius ordered a slight change in the lottery foryoung women that would take place during the pagan festival.Instead of the names of young women, the box would have thenames of saints. Men and women were allowed to draw from thebox, and the purpose of this was to copy the ways of the saint theyhad selected for the rest of the year.Valentine's Day Customs: A number of the customs connected toValentine's Day originated in the belief in England and Franceduring the Middle Ages, that on February 14, birds began to pair.Fourteenth and 15th centuries' French and English literatures makeindirect references to the practice. Those who chose each other ashusband and wife on Valentine's Day apparently called each othertheir Valentine.In terms of the Valentine's greeting "Your Valentine" which todayyou find on a number of Valentine's Day cards, the abovementionedRoman priest Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine'greeting himself.While he was in prison awaiting execution, he apparently fell in lovewith a young girl who would visit him. Before he died, he allegedlywrote her a letter, signed 'From your Valentine,' In terms of thevirtually naked, arrow-shooting cupid character, which shootspeople with its arrows to make them fall in love, this character is avestige of Roman pagan times. Cupid was described as the son ofYoung Muslims, What they should know about Islam Page - 233